'Gary Michael Cole (born September 20, 1956) is an American actor. He began his professional acting career on stage at Chicago's Steppenwolf Theatre Company in 1985. His breakout role was playing Jack 'Nighthawk' Killian in the NBC series Midnight Caller (1988–1991).
Further prominent television roles include Sheriff Lucas Buck in American Gothic (1995–1996), Vice President Bob Russell in The West Wing (2003–2006), Kurt McVeigh in both The Good Wife (2010–2016) and The Good Fight (2017–2022), Kent Davison in Veep (2013–2019), and Special Agent Alden Parker in NCIS (2021–present). A cast member of many animated productions, Cole's voice roles include Harvey Birdman in Harvey Birdman, Attorney at Law (2000–2007, 2018), Principal Shepherd in Family Guy (2000–present), Dr. James Possible in Kim Possible (2002–2007), Mayor Fred Jones Sr. in Scooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporated (2010–2013) and Sergeant Bosco in Bob's Burgers (2012–present).
His most notable film roles are Mike Brady in The Brady Bunch Movie (1995) and Bill Lumbergh in Office Space (1999). Other film appearances include In the Line of Fire (1993), A Simple Plan (1998), One Hour Photo (2002), Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story (2004), Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby (2006) and Pineapple Express (2008).
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Early life
Gary Michael Cole was born on September 20, 1956, in Park Ridge, Illinois, and raised in nearby Rolling Meadows. His father, Robert, was a municipal finance director, and his mother, Margaret or "Peggy", was a school administrative assistant. Cole has an older sister, Nancy.
While attending Rolling Meadows High School, Cole made his acting debut as Snoopy in a high school production of Clark Gesner's Peanuts musical You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown. Cole attended Illinois State University, where he studied theater as a classmate with fellow future actors Laurie Metcalf and John Malkovich.
Career
Cole began his professional career in 1983 as a stage actor in Chicago, where he joined the ensemble of the Steppenwolf Theatre Company in 1985. He has also appeared in several off-Broadway productions in New York City. Some of Cole's early roles included playing accused Army triple-murderer Capt Jeffrey MacDonald in the mini-series Fatal Vision (1984), and an assistant football coach in the film Lucas (1986). Between 1988 and 1991, Cole became popular on TV for playing the part of Jack "Nighthawk" Killian in the series Midnight Caller. One of his most notable roles in 1991 was as Lt. Col. George A. Custer in the much acclaimed television film Son of the Morning Star.
Cole played Secret Service Agent Bill Watts in the film In the Line of Fire (1993). He then played The Brady Bunch patriarch Mike Brady in the film The Brady Bunch Movie (1995), the sequel A Very Brady Sequel (1996), and the television film The Brady Bunch in the White House (2002). Cole starred in the film Office Space (1999), in which he portrayed the micromanaging office supervisor Bill Lumbergh. When asked about the oft-quoted character, Cole said: Everyone in Office Space thought that this movie had died. So that's how I knew the movie was actually some kind of success because people were coming up doing some lines from the movie ... It never gets old because it reminds you that something you did had some impact. You could work your whole career and have nothing like that last that long.
Cole has done voice work on several animated series (Family Guy; Kim Possible; Scooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporated; Harvey Birdman, Attorney at Law; Archer) and had a recurring role on the drama The West Wing as Vice President Bob Russell. He also starred as Captain Matthew Gideon on the short-lived Babylon 5 spin-off Crusade, and had notable guest appearances on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit and Arrested Development. He also played Joe Maxwell on DCOM Cadet Kelly and appeared as real-life astronaut Edgar Mitchell in HBO's recreation of Project Apollo, From the Earth to the Moon.
Cole starred as Lieutenant Conrad Rose on the TNT series Wanted, he is also the voice of the title character on the Adult Swim series Harvey Birdman, Attorney at Law, and starred as Sheriff Lucas Buck on the one season 1995 show, American Gothic. Cole also played Bill Owens, Sy Parrish's (Robin Williams) boss, in the film One Hour Photo (2002). He also appeared in the films Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story (2004), The Ring Two (2005), Talladega Nights (2006), American Pastime (2007), and Forever Strong (2008).
Personal life
Cole married actress Teddi Siddall on March 8, 1992. They have one daughter, who is autistic. On June 19, 2017, Siddall filed for divorce; she died the following year. On July 7, 2021, Cole married interior designer Michelle Knapp.
